Zurbaran

By (author) Whitlum-Cooper Francesca; By (author) Ralston, Daniel Sobrino; By (author) Tedbury, Imogen; By (author) Long, Rebecca J; Contributions by Cano, Ignacio; Contributions by Chastel-Rousseau Charlotte; Contributions by Cherry Peter; Contribut
Description:

Dedicated to Francisco de Zurbarán (1598–1664), one of the great painters of seventeenth‑century Spain, this publication celebrates the drama and power of his distinctive body of work.

A peer of Murillo and Velázquez, Zurbarán’s innovative approach to sacred subjects imbues his works with a startling naturalism and deep emotional force. He spent most of his life in Seville, then one of the wealthiest cities in Europe. Working for monasteries, private patrons and the King of Spain, he produced striking depictions of saints and altarpieces of staggering scale and ingenuity. His still-life paintings, rich in finely observed details and charged with symbolism, remain vivid today. 

Written by experts in the field and featuring exciting new discoveries, this lavishly illustrated publication explores Zurbarán’s most important commissions, from dramatic religious visions to tender domestic scenes, offering a fresh appraisal of this singularly gifted artist.
 
Exhibition Schedule:

The National Gallery, London
(2 May–23 August 2026)

Musée du Louvre, Paris
(7 October 2026-25 January 2027)

Art Institute of Chicago
(28 February-20 June 2027)

Published by National Gallery Global Ltd/Distributed by Yale University Press

Biographical note:

Francesca Whitlum-Cooper is Curator of Later Italian, Spanish and French Paintings, all at the National Gallery, London, Daniel Sobrino Ralston is the CEEH Associate Curator of Spanish Paintings, Imogen Tedbury is Curator of Later Italian, Spanish and French Paintings (maternity cover), and Rebecca J Long is the Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Curator in Painting and Sculpture of Europe at the Art Institute of Chicago.